


Tataru Taru; Gentlewoman Extraordianare

by Yulicia



Category: Final Fantasy XIV
Genre: Established Relationship, Female Warrior of Light (Final Fantasy XIV), Lighthearted, M/M, Original Character(s), Patch 5.3: Reflections in Crystal Spoilers, outsider pov
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-10
Updated: 2020-11-10
Packaged: 2021-03-09 02:27:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,471
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27497179
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Yulicia/pseuds/Yulicia
Summary: Following the Scions’ return to the Source Tataru notices something rather peculiar; a golden ring on Urianger finger. With a ring of eternal bonding present but without a partner to hold the other half Tataru sets about finding Urianger’s mysterious spouse.
Relationships: Urianger Augurelt/Thancred Waters
Comments: 3
Kudos: 81





	Tataru Taru; Gentlewoman Extraordianare

**Author's Note:**

> *holds out my wol like a kitten* hi this is g’aiyha lehn she’s a sch/ast and she’s mute. she’s just here to vibe :)

Tataru prided herself on being rather observant which is why, when she caught sight of the golden ring of - what she could only assume was - eternal bonding sitting upon Urianger’s finger, she could only curse that she had very clearly missed such an obvious change in one of her friends. 

The first time she had spotted it was a few days after the Scions return from the First, when she had handed him a cup of tea. She’d almost dropped the teacup when the gold had caught the light from the window. She might have passed it off as just one more piece of his glittering Astrologian armour but the placement and seeming  _ importance _ radiating off the thing was too much to ignore. 

Tataru berates that she has only noticed it so recently. Though a recent discovery that did not necessarily mean that it was a recent addition to his person, only that she had not seen it before now. 

The worst part about it is she didn’t have even the slightest of guesses who the lucky woman could be. Urianger had always been famously secretive, but Tataru would like to have hoped that she would have noticed the presence of a girlfriend or, she supposed in this case, a  _ wife.  _

At first she thought that it might be someone with whom he met it in the First, which would explain why Tataru was unaware of her presence, and why the ring had appeared  _ after  _ his return. Oh, how wonderfully tragic, then, that he and she would be seperated between worlds. Poor Urianger, no wonder he hadn’t spoken of her! 

Still... there lay the possibility that it  _ was  _ a girl who still resided in their Source, and she had simply never been mentioned. Evidence also pointed to that conclusion as though the ring was new, Tataru wasn't sure if clothing was something able to be passed between worlds. She’d had to remake several versions of their armour from scratch, after all. It may be that rings were the same. 

Tataru racked her brain for the women Urianger was close to, and landed upon only a few candidates, neither of which seemed likely women to have married him. 

Firstly, Y’stola, who Tataru seriously doubted would hold any romantic interest towards Urianger of all people. Plus, Tataru was rather hoping to one day find Y’stola and their dear Thancred together, but alas that is a dream not yet come to fruition, though she was ever patient.

Then, secondly, the Warrior of Light, who Tataru did know was quite close to Urianger, but she also knew that their Warrior of Light cared little romantically for men like Urianger, or let alone men at all. 

Therefore she was at an impasse, but not one that was unbreachable. While the two Miqo’te were unlikely spouses they were close enough to Urianger to, perhaps, know the  _ identity  _ of the one who was. She knew that asking Urianger directly was out of the question as he was most likely to become embarrassed and clam up completely, destroying any hope of discovering the mystery lady. There must be a reason he hasn’t told her yet. 

It was time to put on her thinking cap and delve into the role of Inspector Tataru, Gentlewoman extraordinaire! … or however it was those silly little Inspector Hildebrand stories went. She tended to doze off in the middle of those. 

So, in the bright and early hours of the morning, Tataru sets off on her own little adventure to find the one who has so thoroughly captured one of her Scion’s hearts. There was a bit of a spring in her step as she walked. Tataru  _ lived  _ for gossip, and this was to be her greatest search of all. 

After some searching - and a bit of a distraction thanks to some merchants who seduced her with some incredible deals on some lovely exotic fabrics - she eventually finds Y’stola on the balcony overlooking Mor Dhona, a tea cup in her hand and a content smile across her lips. There is a gentle early morning sunbeam that lands directly upon her, warming her through the cool Mor Dhonan winds. 

Tataru takes her place on the stool beside her, knowing that Y’stola has already noticed her presence.

Y’stola looks towards her, but does not look completely at her, eyes missing their mark just slightly. “Tataru. To what do I owe the pleasure?” She puts her tea cup back in her saucer and shifts her body to face Tataru. “Oh, dear, how rude of me to not have offered you tea. Allow me to rectify the situation.” 

“That’s quite alright, ‘Stola. I’m not planning to stay long.”

Y’stola’s eyebrow quirks up in question. “Are you not? Well, I suspect then that time is of the essence. What is it that you wished to ask of me?” 

“So,” Tataru begins. She might as well get to the meat of her problem. She didn’t exactly have all day to be playing detective - there was still a mountain of paperwork looming on her desk that she was desperately avoiding. “You are quite close to Urianger, are you not?” 

Y’stola picks up her cup once again and sips, smiling over the rim. “In a manner of speaking.” 

Tataru didn’t want to dwell on what secrets that particular answer held. She felt as though they were probably not hers to know anyway. “Then have you noticed any changes with him lately?”

Y’stola pauses, an answer she is still deciding if she wants to speak caught on her lips. “To what end do you propose he has changed? I get the feeling there are several answers to this quandary and yet you are only interested in one. Mayhap we skip to whatever it is?”

Tataru is thankful for the permission. “The ring on his finger.”

“Oh, so they finally did it, did they?” She mumbles. She clears her throat. “And I suppose you want to know who holds the other half, would I be correct in that assumption?” 

Tataru nods quickly and enthusiastically. “I feel so cruel for not knowing! It is like I have missed something important, something obvious. Have I really been so blind?”

Y’stola shakes her head. She’s smiling to herself. “Not blind, no. Though it is by far his worst kept secret it is, nevertheless, one they have both taken great pains to keep out of the spotlight. I, myself, found the truth by mere coincidence.” 

Tataru kicks her feet idly, moving her arm to rest her chin in her palm. “Why? Would it be so terrible to know who holds our scholar’s heart? Is she quite pretty? Is she a girl so fair that the loss of her maidenhood would cause chaos upon the populous?” 

She waits as Y’stola thinks over her answer. Tataru can hear her laughing. “Something like that. Tataru, though I know that this is what you do best I believe t’would be better if you were not to pry into this one. They shall reveal it when they are ready.” 

That was not the answer Tataru wanted to hear. She allows herself a moment to sulk. “I’ll be old and grey before Urianger reveals a single thing that wasn’t repeated from a dusty old book.” 

She hears Y’stola snort. “Take heart that this one, at least, is a secret he cannot keep forever,” she says. Y’stola clears her throat. “Now, would you stay for tea? It has been overlong since I have had the chance to speak to you so casually, and I do miss our time so.” 

Tataru was not one to say no. She did always enjoy Y’stola’s company. “Well, if you insist.” 

Following a lovely chat with Y’stola and a couple of cups of tea Tataru sets out to find her second victim—er—inquiry. Thankfully, it does not take her long. 

Tataru finds the Warrior of Light in the common room of Rising Stones, staring down at her cards. It clearly wasn’t going well as she frowns sourly down at them, like the cards themselves had personally pushed her into a muddy puddle and soaked her socks through. What a world it would be if cards could actually do that. 

“G’aiyha! Just the woman I wanted to see!”

The Warrior of Light startles, her ears pricking up in interest. The Warrior of Light turns to Tataru and regards her with a warm, familiar smile. 

“I have a question for you, if you have a moment.”

The Warrior of Light nods. 

“Have you seen the ring on Urianger’s finger?” 

The Warrior of Light nods once more. She smiles, clearly regarding the existence of such a thing as positive. That was a good sign. She clearly knew who the mystery woman was, and must think that she was a good fit. That was reassuring. Not everyone met G’aiyha’s rather unreasonably high romantic standards, especially not those she held for her dear friends. 

Tataru can barely contain herself. Mayhaps she will be able to coax the answer out of the Warrior of Light instead. 

“Whaaat? You know who it is, I can see it on your face!”

The Warrior of Light laughs. She raised her hands from her lap to sign, “Of course I know who it is.” 

“Well, spill! Who’s the lucky lady? When was the ceremony or, oh, oh, when  _ is  _ the ceremony ? Will he need a planner, mayhaps?” 

The Warrior of Light’s eyes widen. She seemed momentarily stunned. Had Tataru been watching she would have seen the Warrior of Light quickly switch the sign for her first words from ‘he’ quickly, and stutteringly, into ‘she’. “She’s… It seems to me he wishes to keep her identity a secret for now, and woe be it for I to be the one to break a silence that is rightfully his.” 

Tataru deflates. “Oh, not you too! Y’stola said the same thing…” 

The Warrior of Light gives her a pointed look. “Then she would be quite right in doing so. Don’t pry. He’ll tell us when he’s ready.”

“That’s easy for you to say, you already know…” 

The Warrior of Light gives her a sympathetic smile. “I’m sure they’ll tell you all in time.” 

“That’s also what Y’stola said…” Tataru grumbles.

“Well, then she is correct on all accounts!” The Warrior of Light signs excitedly. “I’m sorry, Tataru, I really am, but I think his better half would have my head if I spilled their secrets.” 

“Is she scary, then?” 

Tataru didn’t think a lady like that would be Urianger’s type. She’d pictured him with someone… cute, someone simple. Someone demure, someone who was bookish like him, and someone he could drink tea and eat plain biscuits with. The Warrior of Light makes this woman seem like a fierce warrior. 

Though… their dear Moenbryda had hardly fit Tataru’s imagined description, and yet Urianger had been rather fond of her, so Tataru was willing to accept she may be wrong on this one. 

The Warrior of Light taps a finger against her chin. “Oh, fine. I suppose I can give you the smallest of hints... she’s quite charming actually,” The Warrior of Light signs. “Has just about every eye in the room on her the moment she enters. Scary, she is not, but she is a dear friend, and I would never betray her trust like that.” 

Tataru huffs a sigh. After hearing it from two sources she had to admit that they were right. This was quite a fool's journey. 

“I’ll suppose I’ll have to accept defeat.”

The Warrior of Light gives her a pained look. “‘Tis not a defeat, Tataru, but even if it was I know you would be back on your feet in no time.” 

Tataru gives her a lukewarm smile as she pushes herself off of the chair beside her. She hears the Warrior of Light return to her cards. 

Tataru sighs. Well, what a spectacular waste of time this had been. Though she has learned that apparently Urianger had managed to entrap someone well beyond what Tataru thought to be his league, she feels as though she truly had learned nothing, other than the implication that Tataru and she may have met in the past. That just made it worse. She has met so many charming women in her travels that she couldn’t begin to think of who it could be. She is no closer to this mysterious wife’s identity than she had been this morning.

Sulking like this called for a good mug of… well, it couldn’t be tea. She was all tea-ed out today. Cocoa, perhaps? Yes, cocoa sounded wonderful. Nothing like velvety chocolate to make you forget why you were sad in the first place.

She knows that her stash of the stuff is like to be empty, but she knows that the Warrior of Light keeps some in the room that has become their makeship infirmary, and since she was partially the cause of her woes Tataru knew that she would not mind if Tataru was to borrow some of hers. 

The door creaked as she entered, slipping into the room. She heard shuffling at the other end of the room, but whoever it was didn’t seem to mind her presence, or even really notice her at all. 

On a mission she rounds the corner towards the Warrior of Light’s collection and stops dead in her tracks as she spots Urianger at the other end of the room. He has not noticed her yet, but it would only be moments before he did. 

Tataru steps back, hiding behind one of the cupboards with ease. She holds her breath for a time, waiting until she is sure she would not be caught. 

She peaks around the corner to catch a glimpse of him, and spots that infuriatingly mysterious gold band still sitting on his left ring finger. In fact, now that she watches him, she can see that he often fiddles with it, as though he is unused to, and otherwise extraordinarily aware of, the ring’s presence. 

Tataru bites back a gasp and she hears the door swing open. She darts back behind the cupboard, hoping that their new guest has not seen her, else this would be incredibly difficult to explain. 

She hears the sound of heavy boots, followed by the sound of a very familiar voice. 

“The Bole,” came Thancred’s voice. 

There is the sound of a card being flipped. 

“Damn it.” 

Tataru hears Urianger laugh. She realises she doesn’t hear that nearly often enough. Mayhap she should share with him some more jokes. 

“Why doth thou insisteth upon guessing? ‘Tis not exactly within the given nature of divination to attempt to do so; we are but blessed with the answers we are given.”

Sneaking a peak from behind the cupboards Tataru notices Thancred was still dressed in his white, gunbreaker overcoat. She smiles to herself. She had done quite a good job with that one, if she did say so herself. 

Thancred moves to sit and Tataru stifles a gasp as she retreats back behind the cupboard. She prays that he doesn’t know she’s here. 

“You’re right,” Thancred says. “Besides, an abundance of blessings would be just too much to ask for these days.”

There is a beat of silence, before a chuckle from Thancred breaks it. 

“Don’t look at me like that. I do, occasionally, listen when you speak.”

“It… hath not escaped mine notice.”

“Good, I’m doing something right then. And don’t think I haven’t noticed you’ve pulled the Spear. A card of trust and love, Urianger? That’s a bit on the nose,” he teases. He sounds rather fond. It was a voice Tataru had more often heard spill from him in the presence of a fair lady to woo amongst the city lights of Ul’dah, rather than from him in response to anyone in the Rising Stones. 

She sneaks a peak at the pair and sees that Urianger has gone bright red. It was not a colour Tataru had seen him go in what felt like years. 

“I— Thou knowest that that is not— that that is  _ not  _ how this works,” Urianger manages. “The Spear is most certainly not  _ only _ the lovers card, either. More oft is it a sign of divinity, and of holy fury. I see that part of mine lecturing went most unheard.” 

She sneaks a look at the pair, still hidden in shadows enough that she was unlikely to be spotted. She watches Thancred press his fingers to the book sitting beside Urianger’s hand, upon which Tataru once again spies that damned ring; the cause of her many woes.

“Tis a tome gifted by Lady Alisaie on the origin and fundamentals of Red Magic, procured from one X’rhun Tia.”

“An odd read for you. Picking up a new skill, are we?” Tataru can hear the smile in his voice and knew he would have a gentle sort of smirk across his lips. 

“Nothing of the sort, t’was merely idle curiosity. ‘Tis always of benefit to have insight into the styles of your fellow combatants, Lady Alisaie included,” Urianger taps a finger against his chin. “Lady Alisaie,  _ in particular _ , in fact. Though the replacement for her aetheric rapier has done much for her training, it still brings me great trepidation that she hath once been so neglectful of her own safety.” Tataru catches movement as Urianger’s eyes flick up and down, observing Thancred thoroughly. “‘Tis a trait I observe time and time again.” 

Thancred gave him a look, but didn’t have a response to him. It seems as though Urianger had struck a chord. 

“Thou appeareth to be dressed for combat.”

Thancred looks down at himself. “I suppose I am.”

“Any particular reason for such attire?” 

Thancred shugs. He’s clearly hiding something. Even Tataru can see the way he doesn’t quite believe himself. “Well, given that I am now far less inclined to unfortunate battlefield fainting spells I thought it may be best to return to my training.” He pauses for a moment in thought. “No better place to find dangerous creatures to test ones will against than the wilds of Mor Dhona. In fact,” his tone is light with jear, “might I get you something while I am away? A crystal of some kind, mayhaps?”

She hears Urianger’s fingers drum against the table. “T’would depend upon the exact location of thine journey.”

“East, towards Saint Coinach’s Find.”

There is a deep, long, pause. 

“Thancred…”

Tataru can hear pity practically dripping from the way Urianger says his name. It is said barely above a whisper, and Tataru has to strain now to hear them both. 

Thancred, too, has recently been something of a mystery to Tataru. When he had returned from the First it seemed as though he had aged twenty years in the time he was gone, a unending world weariness to him now present where it wasn’t quite so strong before. She did ask, but he refused to tell her, claiming that he would be alright in time. 

Though that didn’t exactly seem to be the case… 

“Don’t,” she hears Thancred snap. “I know what you’re about to say, and don’t.” 

“Thou needeth not explain thyself, not to me. I ask only that thou take care - the Tower hath been strangely volatile as of late.” 

She hears Thancred sigh, heavy and relieved. She hears the creak of the chair as Thancred stands, the wooden legs scraping along the floor. “Thanks,” he replies. “I’ll be back before nightfall this time, I swear it.” 

She peaked out from her hiding spot and then, and  _ then,  _ Tataru watched, as if in slow motion, as Thancred bent down, one hand against the table, to kiss Urianger - just a gentle press, familiar and practiced. 

Tataru was aghast, her mouth hanging open, his eyes wide, and her hands smacked against her cheeks. Thancred, the—the—the  _ harlot _ was daliancing with a  _ married  _ man! She was in a total state of shock. She knew that Thancred was quite the flirt, but she did not know that he would stoop to  _ this _ ! And  _ Urianger _ — she could hardly believe what she was witnessing! She did not think him to be one to cheat, and yet here she was watching it happen in the open in their own common room! 

She can barely contain herself long enough to hear Thancred leave, the door creaking closed behind him. Tataru breaks from her hiding place and announces her presence, pointing her finger accusingly at Urianger.

“ _ You!”  _

Urianger’s eyes widen a fraction. “Lady Tataru—“ he starts, his voice irritatingly pleasant. 

“Don’t you  _ Lady Tataru  _ me! I’ll be back for you! We need to talk.” 

Tataru is on a warpath. She has seen the misdeeds of her dear friends and now she must set them straight. She would not have such things happening under her nose! She could only  _ imagine _ how Urianger’s wife would feel about this. If she were her, she would be  _ furious! _

She catches the sight of Thancred’s coat disappearing out of the main door. Tataru breaks into a run, intending with all her heart to give Thancred an absolute piece of her mind. That is, she was, right before she is so rudely stopped by the presence of a Miqo’te’s legs. 

The Warrior of Light bars her way. Tataru knows she stands before the slayer of Gods, but she does not falter. 

“G’aiyha! Do not stop me!” Tataru yells. “I know where you keep your Nymian books! I know your favourite mug! Do not tempt me to do something ill to them both!”

The Warrior of Light gasps, aghast. “You wouldn’t,” she signs, clutching her hands to her chest on her final word. 

Tataru hears someone running up behind her, and from the length of their strides she knows it can only be Urianger. There were very few people on the Rising Stones who sounded as he did - long, practiced strides, accompanied now by the slight click of the metal sole of his slipper.

The Warrior of Light glares up at the figure behind her, tearing holes into their very soul. It seems as though the threat to her property has her most frazzled. 

“Urianger,” she signed furiously, her hands jutting out the symbol for his name; palms covering her eyes, which were then pulled back over her head in an imitation of his old goggles and hood. “You’d best tell her.”

“Best tell her what?!” Tataru exclaims. “That you wouldn’t know faithfulness if it bit you?!” 

Tataru spun to look up at Urianger. He wasn’t meeting her eye, or that of the Warrior of Light. 

Urianger paused, clearly not wanting to do as the Warrior of Light had asked. 

The Warrior of Light stared at him. “If you do not then it will be one of us - probably me - cleaning up the Thancred shaped puddle that’ll remain once she is done with him. The ring on your finger has not escaped her notice.”

Tataru looked to Urianger expectedly. She was curious to see how he would try to weasel himself out of this one. 

“Aye, ‘tis as she says,” he concedes. 

Tataru is completely lost for a moment. “As she says…? Whatever do you m—“ She stops in her tracks, arriving at the conclusion in the same violent manner that a ball being thrown rather hard arrives at a wall. “Thancred?!”

She watches as Urianger goes red, the colour going all the way up to his ears. 

It all hits her at once. A dear friend most mysterious, charming, captivating, perhaps prone to causing quite a bit of jealousy;  _ Thancred  _ was the wife!—er, husband. She would have never, in any number of eons, have guessed that not only would she be privy to the union of two of her closest colleagues but that those colleagues would be, in particular, Thancred and Urianger. It is no small wonder that they had both been so secretive. 

Her heart fills about to burst open with excitement. She feels like a kid at Starlight! 

“Oh, our very own Scion couple!” Tatatu cooes. The sound does not do anything to alleviate the colour on Urianger’s cheeks. She pauses for a moment in her joy. “There may be some fair Ul’dahn maidens rather upset with the news… But nevermind. You must tell me how this happened! When!”

She doesn’t even care that this takes Thancred off the table for Y’stola she’s so relieved. Never in her wildest dreams that she would have imagined that love would bloom, truly, within these halls. 

“T’was on the First,” Urianger says. His strained voice tells Tataru that he would literally rather be saying anything else. 

“You’re unusually brief,” Tataru says. “Come on, spill! When did he propose? Or did  _ you  _ propose? Or mayhaps both?!”

“Lady Tataru I do not believe this to be appropriate discussion—“ 

“Oh, none of that!” Tataru scolds. She grabs Urianger by the wrist and drags him to a nearby table, forcing him to sit. The sight was quite silly given the terrific differences in their heights. “You are going to sit here and tell me all about how dreamy Thancred is.” 

Urianger grimaces. He desperately looks to the Warrior of Light for help. 

She is no help at all. “Well, best do as the Lady asks,” she signs. She’s grinning. 

Urianger still looks pained, but he sighs anyway, hanging his head. “T’was he who asked first. I did have a rather elaborate plan in circulation but he…” Tataru catches him smiling a bit from beneath his hair. “He was but one step ahead.” 

Tataru hears the Warrior of Light sigh. Tataru spins to look at her as she signs, “This is much worse than the retelling I received.”

“Oh?” Tataru said with a mischievous smirk. “Pray tell. I do love a good proposal story.”

The Warrior of Light tapped against her chest like she was clearing her throat - a clearly unnecessary action given she did not speak with anything resembling vocal cords. She has her head held high in what Tataru can only imagine is supposed to be an imitation of Urianger.  _ “‘It was under the starlight of the First, the night sky thou hath returned to us. Upon his knees I did observe but a twinkle in his eyes, one not unlike the most heavenly star, and before I could catch but a glimpse there before me was a ring, one of promises of forever, and woe beyond me for I had planned upon just the same.’” _

“Thou embellish overmuch,” Urianger says flatly. “... though I cannot fault thine accuracy.” 

“She’s right,” Tataru giggles. “Her version was much better.” 

“Fantastic!” The Warrior of Light signs excitedly. “Now I get to keep my books and Thancred gets to keep his limbs.” The Warrior of Light pauses in thought. “Which, while I am upon the subject, you should probably talk to him—er, some more, I mean, out wherever he was going. He looked pretty… I don’t know. Not good.” 

“I am most aware,” Urianger says. “Full well do I know the reason for his journey.”

Tataru gets the distinct impression that they are talking as though she was not there. This was something they seemed to do a lot, speak with words unsaid. 

“Oh, is he…” The Warrior of Light trails off. She frowns deeply. “I’m so sorry. Sometimes I forget you can’t… come and go as I can. When I go back I promise I’ll… I don’t know. I’ll ask her to write a letter or something. I’ll get Runar to write ‘Stola one,” her hands pause as she thinks, “...and I’ll get Lyna to write one for G’raha, too! That would be nice, right?” 

The Warrior of Light blinks and then perks up, her sudden moment gone just as quickly as it appeared.. “But nevermind that! That’s for me to worry about! Though,” she turns to Urianger. “He will need someone of like-mind in the coming days, I think. I... worry, you know?” 

“Were that thou were alone in thine anxieties. Thou need not worry; he shall have it, most ardently.” 

“Good,” The Warrior of Light signs. “Good. Well, Tataru, now you know! And Urianger, you probably owe me for this.”

The doey-eyed expression she gave him said that that ‘probably’ was instead a ‘definitely’. 

“...and I think you owe ‘Stola, too,” she added. 

“She shall have mine thanks as soon as she is able,” Urianger says. “Thou, however, shalt have mine endless gratitude.” 

The Warrior of Light kicks at the ground idly. “Then can I ask something of you?” 

“Thou… hath a request?” 

The Warrior of Light thinks for a moment, and then nods. “May I borrow your tome on Primal entrapment. The one about the Allagans?”

Urianger seems hesitant. “Nay, Lady G’aiyha, thou knowest that—“

“That you owe me.”

Tataru watched them engage in a staring match for a moment, light pink eyes against lighter-still gold. There was a fiery stubbornness plain in the Warrior of Light’s stare that reminded Tataru that she was most certainly in the presence of Primal, King, and God-slayer. It seemed as though a thousand unspoken words were exchanged between them, to which the conclusion was Urianger’s heavy sigh. 

“Let it be known that I am not one to leave mine debts unfulfilled,” he griped.

The Warrior of Light, on the other hand, seemed completely ecstatic, her tail swishing behind her as she beamed. “Now, why don’t you go and get it? I shan’t be walking into your quarters in the middle of the night for it. Not again. I know who sleeps in that bed.”

“Aiyha,“ Urianger scolds. He’s gone red again. It does not escape Tataru’s notice that the Warrior of Light has flustered him into dropping not only her title, but her tribe letter, too. Oh, there was a  _ juicy  _ story behind this one. She would have to ask about it later… probably when Urianger wasn’t in earshot.

The Warrior of Light’s hands are frantic as signs, “Oh, this is so exciting! I can speak so freely now! Since Tataru now knows, and therefore soon will the entirety of Mor Dhona, shall I metaphorically sing the news from the rooftops?”

“Prithee, do not.”

“T’was but a jest,” The Warrior of Light signs, waving her hands in a placating gesture. “Tataru can manage that all on her own.”

Tataru gives them a thumbs up. Urianger buries his head in his hands. 

Tataru was filled with such relief. What a flip-flop of emotions today had been. But.. she’d done it! She’d found the identity of the mysterious spouse, even if she had to be privy to a wild misunderstanding in order to do so. Though, with one question answered, another was left unfinished. 

“So… was there a ceremony?”

Urianger shakes his head.

“ _ Will  _ there be one?” Tataru asks, and her voice is full of hope. 

“We… hath not thought that far.”

Tataru sits with her mouth agape. “You got engaged, got a ring, and  _ didn’t think about the ceremony?!”  _

“Lady Tataru, if I mayest remind thee that there hath been most pressing occurrences that hath needed our undivided attention as of late,” Urianger counters. “There hath naught been  _ time  _ to dwell on such things. We hath agreed that the rings would be sufficient.” 

“Oh, bugger that! We’re having a ceremony!” Tataru exclaims. “Even if I have to postpone a war to make it happen!” 

Tataru barely notices the worried looks shared between Urianger and the Warrior of Light. She was barely looking at them anymore. She had much bigger things to think about - like planning a Ceremony of Eternal Bonding! She wonders if they like moogles...

It was then that Thancred decided to reenter, sweeping back inside in a hurry. He seemed slightly out of breath, like he’d run back. 

“Forget something?” The Warrior of Light signs to him. 

Thancred nods. He’s about to embellish on what in particular had brought him back but Tataru cuts him off. 

“Thancred! You must show me!” She exclaims.

Thancred’s brow furrows in confusion, his head tilting slightly. “Er, I beg your pardon? Show you what, exactly?” 

Tataru feels herself roll her eyes. Now she had to pry more information out of Thancred, too. She sighs. Was her work never done? 

“Your ring!” 

Thancred stares at her with wide, worried eyes. His gaze flicks up to Urianger, who Tataru hears clear his throat behind her. 

“T’was not mine intention to be,” he pauses in a moment of thought, “caught. Though it appears Lady Tataru hath seen more than mayhaps we intended.” 

“Oh, thank the Gods,” Thancred sighs, his shoulders sagging with relief. “It was getting a bit tiring hiding, don’t you think?”

He’s looking over Tataru’s shoulder at Urianger. 

“Verily,” Urianger replies. He seems just as relieved. 

Thancred turns back to her and gives Tataru a winning smile. She doesn’t miss the way it doesn’t quite reach his eyes, even if she knows he is trying to make it so. She does appreciate the effort, though, knowing there was something else clearly weighing on his mind. “Here,” he says, taking off his glove and holding out his hand. 

Tataru skips forward with a start, taking his hand into her own, examining it. There it was, just as she thought, the matching band sitting upon his ring finger. He’s been hiding it beneath his glove this whole time. It’s no wonder she hadn’t seen it. 

She examines the ring with a close and careful eye. It’s  _ beautiful _ . Though the band is a simple gold the quality of the metal is exquisite, and Tataru swears she can see the subtlest of a white-gold underlining running through the clearer gold. It gives the metal a brilliant lustre that plain gold sometimes lacked. Tataru’s goldsmithing mind was running wild. This thing must have cost him a fortune, and she assumes Urianger’s is the same - he didn’t quite let her close enough to look. 

“The craftsmanship on this is impeccable! Wherever did you find it?” Tataru asks gleefully.

“I had some favours left to claim with the Guildmaster of the Ul’dan Goldsmithing Guild,” he shrugs. He doesn’t explain what those favours are, and Tataru doesn’t want to ask. “It’s… something of a replication of Pixie craftsmanship in the First. It’s not perfect, but it’s the closest I think we’re going to get in the Source.” 

“Serendipity made this?! Oh, you lucky souls…” Tataru cooes. She would kill for a ring made by the ever talented Guildmaster. 

“Well, with some help,” Thancred says. 

The Warrior of Light gives him a knowing smile. “The King sends their congratulations,” she signs. 

Tatatu wants nothing more than to look at this ring all day, but she does eventually let Thancred’s hand go. Seeing this it feels more real. Tataru knew that Urianger and the Warrior of Light were telling the truth ( _ this  _ time, they didn’t always) but this confirmation is nice to have. 

“Urianger informs me you have not even  _ thought  _ about a ceremony.” 

Thancred shifts. “We’ve been rather busy, Tataru, I’m not sure if you’ve noticed.” 

“Twelve preserve, you two are  _ so  _ alike.” Tataru sighs. “If you won’t think of your own ceremony,  _ I  _ will.” 

“I place my trust in your capable hands,” Thancred says airly, distractedly. Tataru doesn’t miss the way he was shifting, as though antsy to leave. He motions to the Warrior of Light. “There’s a satchel under that table there, might I trouble you for it?”

“Not at all,” the Warrior of Light signs pleasantly. She ducks her head beneath the aforementioned table and returns with a bag in her hands. She walks over and hands it to Thancred, who holds it with an iron grip. “What’s in here?” she signs. 

“I’ll tell you later,” he mumbles. He’s already half-way out the door. Before they can ask anything more of him he is gone, disappearing in a flurry 

“Worrying…” the Warrior of Light signs to herself. She turns to Urianger. “Any ideas as to what that was about?” 

“I have but a few, aye,” Urianger replies, his voice low. 

Though she was concerned for him, Tataru figured the best thing to do was to set about making her promise come true. Nothing better to take Thancred’s mind off his troubles like the declaration of his own undying love. 

“Blue or white flowers, do you think?” Tataru ponders aloud. She isn’t even listening to the other two anymore. 

“White is nice,” The Warrior of Light signs. “Urianger?”

Urianger looks at her incredulously. “I hold few strong opinions on the colours of most flora.” 

Tataru has already left, wandering off back towards the solar. Maybe gold would be nice? Or a sunflower yellow, like the glow of the sun…

* * *

As the Warrior of Light watched Tataru leave she was caught in the feeling of something left unsaid. 

“Urianger. I was talking about  _ your  _ flowers. The ones at  _ your _ ceremony.” 

She turns to Urianger, who looks a bit lost. His eyes flick between the front door that Thancred had left through and the other door that Tataru had left through. 

The Warrior of Light gets the feeling that sitting before her was another problem she would have to help solve. That was alright though, she was quite good at solving problems. 

Her hands move easily as she signs, “Would you like me to go and stop that?” 

“I—“ Urianger starts, before quickly stopping. She hears his teeth click together as his jaw snaps closed. 

Oh no. He was speechless. This  _ was _ bad. 

“Go ahead,” the Warrior of Light prompted. Gods know this wouldn’t be the first time she would have to pry some honesty out of Urianger. Thankfully, the truth generally came to light easier between the two of them now than it once did. 

“Why doth the prospect fill me with dread?” Urianger asks, sounding mostly like he’s asking himself, rather than her. “I would trust him with the entirety of mine own heart, and love him for so long as the stars held light, yet the idea of such a public proclamation is… nauseating.” 

The Warrior of Light was not surprised that the man who would rather brave the wilds of a dangerously enchanted pixie kingdom than live amongst other people was not thrilled with the idea of the spotlight. 

She shrugs. “It’s not for everyone, I suppose,” she signs. “I don’t think it makes it any less real. So, tell you what. I’ll go and talk Tataru down, you go and tend to Thancred, and we shall all overcome this together, hm?”

Though his voice is quiet the Warrior of Light catches Urianger say, “And what precious artifact of mine will I be gifting upon thee for this?” 

The Warrior of Light laughs. He was making jokes. Good. It wasn’t  _ that  _ bad. “Consider this one on the house.” 


End file.
